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I was out detecting with my Equinox and had a solid 21-22 on the VDI numbers, it never flicked off those numbers, it was down about 15 cm's. I dug it up expecting a NZ $1 or $2 coin, both come up the same numbers. I was puzzled when what I ended up finding was a rock looking object This is it next to an older NZ 10c coin I found only minutes before hand To me it looks more like a rock than a bit of metal, I tried to hit it as hard as I could with a hammer to see if it was a chunk of lead or something thinking that would flatten it, it didn't make a mark on it. I then hit it with the back flat end of my Log splitter thinking this will surely do some damage to it, but no, it didn't leave a mark, all it did is cracked the concrete under the mystery object. This thing is extremely tough. It weighs 17 grams and feels quite heavy for it's size and not magnetic. What could it possibly be?

I wonder that because i read To put sensivity To 1 before pump GB is better . I dont belive but anyone know about that ?

Disclaimer: I've only really been interested in Gold hunting so I'm pretty clueless in using my Nox for jewellery hunting. This might be a challenging one, a farmer I knows wife lost her wedding ring in a paddock and didn't realise, Later the same day they run a plough or some sort of farming gadget over the paddock as they planted it out with grass seed so the ring is likely buried. They're pretty certain it was lost in this paddock. I have been recruited to try find this ring, it's 24k gold with about 20 diamonds on it. The guy originally gave me the wrong description of the ring, probably his ex-wife's ring he described as he said it had 1 diamond and sapphires 😄 The paddock is really junk filled, I went and swung my detector over it yesterday morning before skiing and there was iron I assume setting the detector off everywhere in all metal mode. I know the VDI numbers are extremely useful for coin hunting but will they help for finding this ring, I really don't want to have to dig everything! Is there a range I should be targeting? I assume Field 1 will be the best mode or maybe Park 1 seeing there is a lot of junk? Small gold when prospecting always comes up under 10 on the VDI's, I am guessing a ring will come up higher? Would the Equinox be my best choice or would I be better off using my T2 with Mars Tiger 10x13" or 15" round Stock T2 coil for more ground coverage? I also have a Garrett Euroace with Nel Tornado 12x13" I could use if that would be best. That's the biggest coils I own. I have a GPX 4500 with a 15x12 DD Commander I could use but I don't want to dig lots of junk and I was hoping VDI's would be useful. I told them I'd do the hunt for nothing when they tried to pay me as it's a bit of fun for me anyway but they said they can't allow that and they'd give me a few sheep for my freezer for my efforts even if I don't find it but I'm sure if I find it they'll force me to take some sort of payment, I will try refuse as I really don't want it but it will be difficult to not take it when they're forcing it.... The paddock is about 3 hectares!!!!! Just over 7 acres so I really have a job ahead of me. The soil is extremely mild but it seems to have its share of junk. I assume rusty old nails and tractor bits and mower blades whatever else over the years. Any help appreciated.

Called my usual dealer, Backwoods, and no eta at all on when he'll get them. Anyone know any dealers to check with? TIA! Cal

Found this large piece on my property in east-central Ohio. It looks much like petrified wood but not quite as slick as many specimens I have seen. It's also not very common to find in my part of Ohio (Licking County). Is there any way to test to see if it is indeed silicified or petrified wood?

Hey everyone... There are horse paddocks a few miles from home. I stopped in once before a few months ago and got a merc, some wheats, modern clad, bits and pieces of jewelry and metal grommets or ornaments off of clothing. I dug a bunch of quarters there which tells me that no one is hunting the area. These digs came from the grassy areas surrounding the paddocks. On my return yesterday morning, I decided to go into the paddocks (all the gates are open) to see if I could find rings, bracelets or whatever metal objects my Nox would pick up. The ground is an inch or two of crushed rock, not quite sand, and real gritty. It was like finely crushed gravel...lots of tiny rocks. Below this topping, is some sort of concrete floor or something rock hard. Don't know what it is but my Nox was getting high conduct signals from down under and I couldn't break through. I gave up on it. Here is my scenario... I started in Park 1, factory settings. My audio was extremely choppy. No consistent signals. Took off IB, went to 50 tones... still choppy and erratic. I felt myself panicking a little. What to do? I put it in Park 2, factory settings. Still choppy and erratic. Did a couple of noise cancels and ground balances, to no available. I thought to myself, "I'm outta here". Is this what beach hunting is like? No can't be. This was strange and I knew that I have to research and discuss with members on the boards.

Found this item on Amazon. It might be good for dunking sub-IP68 pinpointers, or as an added level of protection to IP68s. I'm going to buy one just for the heck of it. What do you guys think?

any info or ideas on what would find more nuggets ?????

found this today in a wash below and old mine, any ideas as to what it might be. Got it with my Equinox 800 in park 1, was looking for possible coins, had the 6 inch coil, sure sounded good.

Hi, I am looking to purchase a gold finding metal detector that can handle mineralized soil well, but also locates smaller gold. I live in southern Nevada and it seems that the more I read, the more confused I am getting. I guess I'm looking for a detector that does well with tiny and larger gold. I had the Gold Bug 2 for a while and it was way too sensitive for me and not rain-proof. The Makro Gold Kruzer, The Gold Monster and others on that level are all within my price range, so I am having trouble making a decision. I understand that the right detector for someone may not be the right detector for someone else, but I do believe the right input is valuable. I haven't seen any head to head videos using the Gold Kruzer yet (still too new) but it looks promising so far. The reviews of these detectors are great, but nothing beats real world testing under various conditions and soil types. I am not one for air testing due to it's controlled nature, so the confusion grows. I know many of these detectors can locate tiny gold due to their higher kHz, but there is a trade off. I appreciate any suggestions. Thank you, Mike

Here is a easy way to fix your shaft wobble, even if only temporarily. The male end of the middle shaft just needs a single layer of electrical tape. The tolerances on the Minelab shaft are actually pretty tight. If it was any closer you might not be able to get it apart again. Anybody who has swung a Tesoro Knows those twist-locks only work for first assembly, lol I've done this before with other machines except I used aluminum tape, time will tell how long the electrical tape will hold out. The tape in the picture has about 15 hours on it, so far it's OK. Besides, it's easy to replace. Coincidentally when I took the machine apart for a cleaning and to take this picture, I noticed that Minelab made a similar raised surface on the lower fiberglass rod. The lower rod is so long that a little play really wouldn't translate into as much slop as the upper connection does.

Hello all, i like to take the kids on hikes and look for cool rocks. I came across this but no one can tell me what it is, and I've looked for an assayer in my area. The closest is quite aways away. I live in so cal. Any help would be fantastic. This weighs approx. 8.79 oz

I first discovered the usefulness of my Gold Bug Pro's Fe3O4 meter when I was very much a greenhorn and running my sluice in a creek, I first tried to use my GBP to find nuggets in my sluice dig hole but it wasn't working, I noticed I could use the meter to follow where the black sand was, and this in turn was leading me to find more gold... or so I think... I have no proof but it felt like it was helping me. On a side query, if I do find a layer of black sand when I'm digging should I target that layer and dig up all the black sand on purpose as my understanding is the black sand and gold hang out together? That's what I've been doing in the past.

Introducing my first-ever encounter with "fool's gold" -- not pyrite, that's at least pretty easily ruled out -- instead, mica schist with quartz, that is "pretending to be gold on quartz" ha. Yes, some rocks are a really big tease to the novice mind; in this case, it was me who was the fool that got fooled by the non-fools gold. I think this find was in the mid to late 70's ... by far, this piece looks more like gold than any pyrite I've ever found. Did you keep or do you have a photo of, or a story to tell as regards, what rock first fooled you? Or were you savvy about gold/ non-gold from the start?

So my main gold producing creek pretty much drys up in the late summer, and im wanting to detect the active creek channel. Overburden runs from about 3 feet at the deepest to exposed bedrock at the shallowest. Ounce nuggets were found somewhere in the creek in the old days and ive found up to a 13 gram nugget under about 6 inches to 12 inches of overburden. For punching deep in a creek bed with some water in pools, what coil would you recommend for a GPX 4800? My current coils arnt water proof, and i have yet to find a large nugget in the exposed bedrock. Im currently looking at a 14 inch mono and possibly a 14X9 mono to complement it. Not sure on the brand yet. The new detechs look interesting and seem well priced. I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

I've always had to do more with less. Nonetheless I'm usually able to do far better than I should. With very little disposable income I'm still able to use the latest iPhone, MacBook Pro, and some of the best metal detecting equipment money can buy. I've done it the same way. I set my sights on what I want to be my end point, but I'm willing to start at the bottom and work my way up. The goal is always not to spend any more than I've started out with, and I keep track. This is my second leap into the world of metal detecting and treasure hunting. When I first started out I traded a generator I wasn't using for a Minelab X-Terra 70. Several months later and not having made much progress with the machine, save for a WW1 military dog tag, I decided to sell it to help finance home renovations. Instantly I regretted it. One of the rewards of this hobby is just the idea that you may find something exceptional, the spirit of adventure and imagination that goes with it. That was now gone. A year later, when spring arrived I began combing through the ads. I found a Harbor Freight 9-Function for $5. I picked it up and didn't expect much from it. But something happened for me with this machine that didn't happen with the Minelab. I was better able to control it. I understood it almost instantly. Within a couple days I pulled a jar full of coins out of my lawn. Seeing how much more progress I made with this machine vs. a far more expensive machine last time, I began in depth study of everything to do with metal detectors. I continued to keep an eye on local ads. Shortly after I found a Bounty Hunter Pioneer 505 for $25 and sold my HF for $30. I learned the extra functions it had, and monitored the ads. I sold it for $120 and bought a bundle of two machines, two diggers and a pinpointer for $100 from a husband and wife team who quickly tired of the hobby. The two machines were a Fisher F2 and a Bounty Hunter Quick Draw 2. The Quick Draw 2 was too similar to the 505, so I quickly sold it for $100. At this point I'm up an F2, a pinpointer, two diggers, and $125 (not to mention my finds). I got on very well with the F2 and the pinpointer made my life much easier. Still, I kept my eye out. Next up was another Bundle. A Bounty Hunter Discovery 3300 and Gold Digger for $80. I sold the F2 for $150. Now I'm up $185 with two machines and accessories. Enter the Land Ranger Pro for $150. Sold the Discovery 3300 for $130 and the Gold Digger for $60. Now I'm up $225 plus a Land Ranger Pro. I'm a very happy camper at this point. The Land Ranger Pro seemed to have everything I wanted and I had no plans to go any further for a while. I particularly liked to be able to notch out targets by one VDI at a time and set my tone breaks where I wanted to. The F2 was good at sorting most pull tabs from nickels. This one was even better. Shortly after though, the best deal yet popped up as far as I was concerned. A Fisher F75 LTD for $300. That would be a good deal even now, let alone a few years ago. I jumped on it, agreeing to travel all the way to PA for it the next day. I sold my Land Ranger Pro for $200 (still very new at this time). Now I'm up an F75 LTD plus a balance of $125. I missed my notching feature, but with the depths I was able to reach I began pulling up relics, much older coins and jewelry. Now I wanted a water machine. I found a Fisher Aquanaut and two Lesche diggers with some haggling for $125. Another steal. Now I'm a Fisher guy! And I'm dead even with two great machines as far as I was concerned. Many people would be happy to stop there. Enter a diving buddy who had a closet queen AT Pro. He offered to trade dead even for the Aquanaut so he could explore off the Florida Coast while diving. I agreed, never going further than my waist myself. At this point I cashed in my clad for over $150 and bought my girlfriend a used Garrett Ace Bundle which included the machine, two coils, an underwater box, a Digger and a pinpointer. Due to the discomfort of developing cancer she didn't last long in the hobby, unfortunately. I pieced the Bundle out to make back $340. I sold the AT Pro for $450 and bought an MX Sport for $550. Now I'm up $240 with an MX Sport and an F75 LTD. Another buddy had purchased a V3i back in 2010 that he never got on with. Being a fan of the MXT and always wanting to try the F75 LTD he agreed to let me trade the F75 LTD and $200 for his V3i. Now I'm up $40, A V3i and an MX Sport, several diggers and Bullseye TRX pinpointer. Now I'm a Whites guy lol. This doesn't take into account that I've kept 90% of my finds without yet cashing them in. I'd have to imagine that most people would be happy to end up here and would look no further for equipment at this time. But today I see a CTX-3030 with a pinpointer and a few diggers for $800. Hmmmm, my brain is working overtime. Before the weekend is out, that CTX may just be in my hands with some cash to spare toward the Equinox. It took me several years and patience to do it, but I have equipment that most people in the hobby would respect and some would even envy. There are always deals to be had in this hobby, thanks to the high turnover rate of people whose wallets were bigger than their ambitions. I've used this same method to acquire everything from my phone to my computer, watch, and much more. To this day I continue to buy machines low and sell them at going used rate to make extra money. It has allowed me the privilege of using just about any good machine out there for a while and making a few bucks when I part with them.

Hi, I'm new to this forum but have detected on and off for the past 3 or 4 years and in the 80's with my dad ( I did all the digging), I recently got permission from my dentist who is in an old fine arts building that was built in 1840 in central Indiana, I dug this up at about 4-5 inches down and have Googled the heck out of it and can not come up with anything. I'm thinking it's some kind of decorative bell. It had a partial bottom that broke up and a magnet will only stick to the post, it has the number 1067 on the inside, I lightly washed it off with water and a towel and some shine came through on parts of it. ANY help or info would be much appreciated.

Hi all, Does anyone know anything about this little beauty? A mate of mine bought it brand new a long time ago and found it when cleaning out the shed.

There is an area of a park that I hunt that I have gone over many times with my CTX, Deus, and EQ 800. I have studiously tried to learn how to use the many features of each detector to know good targets from questionable ones. Recently friends have expressed an interest in trying metal detecting so I bought a Quest Q20 to loan them because it is simpler than my other machines while still having minimally useful features. Took it out to the area of the park mentioned above to check it out and....you guessed it....found my best find of the past year, a heavy gold plated silver ring. Which got me to thinking.......(always dangerous). Its been discussed before of course but I wonder how many of us use all the info and adjustments of our machines to find the good stuff but only end up using all that info almost as a reason NOT to dig. Is that why a new detector always seems to "bring hunted out sites back to life"? Is that why, in the face of increasing technology, beep and dig machines are still out there doing well? Knowing your machine(s) is necessary for sure and it's fun tweaking them to get their best. But just what is their best? We've all seen a good strong signal turn out to be something other than what was indicated. Still, there are a few people who can tell an awful lot about a target before digging it and digging every beep is hardly a viable option. Plus you can't sweep every square inch of a site. BUT....... I'll bet most of us just outsmart ourselves more often than not. Or is that just me?

As i am getting more and more into nugget shooting, i've decided that i need to set up gold test garden, so that i can determine how the changes i make to the machines i have affect their ability to find gold. As luck would have it my backyard has some of the hottest soil i've detect on thus far. So the plan is to dig a trench about 3 feet deep then auger holes into the sides and case with pvc. Do this for every inch of increasing depth. This way i can quickly change the target that's in the ground but still come as close as possible to simulating a gold target in undisturbed hot ground. With the 6 inch equinox coil on the way i cant think of a better way to accurately compare its capabilities to the gm1000s capabilities, and then also be able to compare their two larger coils on larger gold at depth. Probably will put together a few videos. And as an added bonus the trench i dig will also be a prospecting trench since there is very fine gold and a source vein crossing my back yard somewhere. Will keep you guys posted. Let me know your thoughts!

Been out for a few hunts with my Nox 600, mostly 50-100 year old trashy parks. Everything is just great even got into some river hunts with some success. Where I’m having trouble is when I go out to my old coal mining ghost town sites which has trash from every decade. Also all the buildings have been removed or bulldozed so lots of nails, bullets and flat iron etc mixed around.(Pacific Northwest Washington) #1 I’m guilty of mode hopping at the mining site. #2 the site is so trashy I cannot find a spot to proper ground balance!!!! general settings sensitivity=18-20 iron bias=1-2 back and forth recovery=2-3 back and forth I would love all tips links etc. thanks so much for reading

After reading reports of the abilities of the Equinox 600 in multi against the 800 I was wondering if anyone has used the 600 for hunting small nuggets as I’m looking at a new general purpose detector that I can loan to friends on occasional prospecting trips , although I’m figuring a 6 inch coil would probably be required also . regards PM🇦🇺

Ive attached a lidar map of the main area i prospect. Id like to get peoples knee-jerk reactions on where they would swing a detector knowing large nuggets (they have generally been very crystalline with a few specimens found) have been found in the creek. So what would be your number 1, 2, and 3 spots to focus on. Ive detected around a good bit and have yet find anything outside of the creek, but i want to see if im missing something obvious. lol Search Area 1.pdf

EDITED.........For a first timer just doing some experimental nugget hunting would it be worth a GPAA membership for access to the claims or just doing some research and hunting BLM land? Will be in Phoenix visiting a friend after a work trip that ends in Vegas. I am entertaining renting a car instead of flying and trying my luck for nuggets along the way! Thanks...Noah What group/club is best for AZ or NV gold detecting claims??? First time detector prospector looking for a nugget!!! Relic/coin hunter from Florida planning a vacation. Thanks

On my FB a few weeks ago I posted a photo of a thin metal tin rectangular in shape that had Chinese writing on it. Yes I know it is an opium tin, but what does the symbols say? Found these 3 at an old mining site with Equinox. Thanks for your help.